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Our Collective Psychosis

Submitted by Sean Hackbarth on Wed, 09/10/2008 - 01:40
in

The idea of 2008 being a transformational election is sitting in the bottom of a trash can at Invesco Field. With his conventional acceptance speech Sen. Barack Obama abandoned his weird campaign and aimed to unite his base for the fall. Sen. John McCain did the same by using an Alaskan wild card named Sarah Palin. Both campaigns are getting large crowds, and there's intense interest in the election.

Too much intensity. Before our eyes we're watching Sens. Biden and Obama implode with poor choices of words, a foolish focus on Gov. Palin, and an inability to effectively counter Palin. All the while the Obama "new politics" brand receives the death of a million cuts.

Souless Left-wing webloggers want to figuratively do to Palin what was done to the bear lying in her Alaska office. The MSM follows along investigating any crazy rumor appearing on DailyKos or Andrew Sullivan's weblog.

Palinmania has swept the country (me included) with Fox News getting its highest rating for a primetime documentary. And it aired on a Saturday!

Obama's quip about lipstick and pigs sent Sean Hannity into a frenzy like Alan Colmes dropped a toaster into Sean's bathtub. Hannity was shocked 30 Obama operatives were dropped into Alaska to dig up stuff on the Palins. The yapper failed to realize there's likely dozens of opposition researchers for McCain across the country trying to uncover new, damaging information on Obama and Biden. The guests on his cable show were insipid offering even less substance than usual.

Last time I checked there were wars going on in Iraq and Afghanistan. Have we forgotten Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been explicitly nationalized?

It's like we're losing our minds.

Sadly, after listening to John Fund talk about potential Election Day voting problems our psychosis could get worse. He told a group at the Heritage Foundation, Tuesday, that the Obama and McCain campaign collectively have 14,000 lawyers ready to launch legal challenges across the country. If you thought Florida 2000 was bad imagine legal fights in Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Mexico, or all of them combined. Such a scenario doesn't bode well for American self-governance.

A quality of conservatism since Burke and expounded by Russell Kirk is prudence. Being careful, considerate, and wise leads us down the path of steady progress in tune with our fellow men and women. In a media environment where truth and untruth can go viral (ask United Airlines) conservatives should be extra careful. An election will happen, but we'll also have to live with one another afterwards. Left and Right, MSM and webloggers need to take a breath, step back for a moment, and ask ourselves where we want to go on November 5, 2008 no matter who wins.

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Comments

Really good, thoughtful post

Submitted by lagomorph on Wed, 09/10/2008 - 15:54.

When I first started reading the Palin Derangement Syndrome blog posts the weekend after McCain selected Palin, I was so reminded of the Salem Witch Hysteria that I wondered if there was some nationwide ergot outbreak afoot.  

Most people in the country, including Democrats, are center/moderates or simply apolitical, and most of the Republicans I know are quiet, low profile people.  But for hard core Lefties, it's only going to get worse.  How much worse can it get?  Well, for those who live in large, racially dense and highly politicized urban areas such as Los Angeles, it doesn't take much imagination to foresee a major racially motivated "event" on November 5.  The scenario in which Obama loses a pivotal, historic election will be an an opportunity for highly influential churches and community leaders to encourage the kind of prudence espoused by Burke & Kirk, but my experiences living in Los Angeles during both the Rodney King riots and the O.J. trial did not indicate that these leaders held much sway with the majority of their constituents. 

There are few things more sobering than gazing out of a 10th floor office window in the afternoon and watching half the city burning between you and the neighborhood you'll be commuting to that evening.  Unless, perhaps, it's arriving home to find your neighbors have left notes that say "Please Don't Kill Us!" on their front doors.  True story:  I left a very substantial salary and a condo on Manhattan Beach with an ocean view right after that exact event took place in 1992.